This week, I invited writer Elle Fredine onto the show without knowing what she would read — and she didn’t know she’d be reading at all. What unfolded was pure yes-and magic: a dark, sharply drawn story built from a simple prompt. We talk improvisation, divergent thinking, ADHD, childhood movie nights above the Arctic Circle, and how fiction can reveal a deeper truth than autobiography ever could.
Under 100% spontaneity, this episode became a quiet masterclass in creativity.
🎧 Watch or listen on your favorite platform:
YouTube | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Amazon Music
Listening to Elle walk through her process reminded me why whole-mind thinking sits at the center of Authbition. She doesn’t chase the “right” idea — she lets her attention wander, welcomes the butterfly thoughts, allows the squirrel paths, and practices improv’s foundational principle: yes, and…
What struck me most is how a single detail — a built-up boot on a little boy — unlocked an entire world for her. Writing, for Elle, isn’t linear. It isn’t efficient. It isn’t even deliberate in the traditional sense. It’s attentive. Curious. Receptive. She lets the mind work the way the mind naturally wants to work, and the story becomes the discovery.
The one that stayed with me:
“…people see exactly what they expect to see.”
Whether in fiction or on the nightly news, Elle’s story reminds me that so many people are willing to believe anything they already think is true.
A big thank you to
A. L. (Elle) Fredine for being my guest on the show this week.
Thank you for taking the time to read, listen, and watch Authbition. I appreciate you.
Health, happiness, kindness, respect
for every being and all things.
— Andrew